Resources

Welcome to our Information Superhub. This section attempts to list the most important resources available for Corona Renderer.It contains links to manuals, tutorials, models, render farms, material libraries, plugins, and more.

Did you get stuck with something? Problems with installation?
Where is the button which does that…? This section should
help you to find the right answers.

Frequenty Asked Questions

Here is a short list of frequently asked questions.
You can find the full list at our helpdesk portals
for 3ds Max and
for Cinema 4D

Hardware & Software FAQ

What are the hardware requirements of Corona Renderer?

For Corona Renderer 2 and newer, you will need a CPU that supports the SSE4.1
instruction set (SSE4.1 has been available since Intel i3/i5/i7 and AMD Bulldozer
architectures – so, any processor from within the last 10 years).
Here is a list of compatible CPUs.
The Licensing Server may run on legacy CPUs that do not meet this requirement
(however, the computer won’t be able to be used for rendering).

To use our optional Fast Preview Denoiser (NVIDIA OptiX), you need an NVIDIA GPU with Kepler
or newer architecture and the newest GPU driver. Not all mobile GPUs are supported. Note: this denoiser type is optional, and Corona Renderer will work fine even
if it's not installed (for example if you are using an AMD or integrated GPU). We also offer
a High Quality denoiser, which utilizes purely the CPU, and this denoiser can be used
on any computer which can run Corona Renderer.

GPU Denoiser:
to ensure smooth operation and best performance of our Fast Preview Denoiser (NVIDIA OptiX),
please make sure you are using the newest driver available for your graphics card. The drivers
can be downloaded from nvidia.com.

Corona is x64-compatible only.

Which operating systems are supported?

Microsoft Windows, versions 7, 8, 8.1, 10 (3ds Max and Cinema 4D).

macOS, versions 10.7 and newer (Cinema 4D).

Corona is x64-compatible only.

A version for Linux is planned.

Which host applications are supported?

3ds Max and Cinema 4D are fully supported host
applications at the moment. There are ARCHICAD and Blender versions in various stages of development.

Which 3ds Max versions are supported by Corona Renderer?

Corona Renderer currently supports x64 versions of 3ds Max 2013-2020.
There are no plans of supporting older versions of 3ds Max.

Which Cinema 4D versions are supported by Corona Renderer?

Corona Renderer currently supports x64 versions of Cinema 4D R14-R20.
There are no plans of supporting older versions of Cinema 4D.

The Render Engine FAQ

Is it CPU, GPU or hybrid?

Why is there no GPU version?

Short version: the GPUs are not as great for ray tracing as the marketing sometimes
portrays them. Please see our separate article for a more elaborate answer.

We are currently researching the possibility of using GPU for Denoising, and for post-processing tasks
such as bloom & glare. Please see the
roadmap
for more information.

Is Corona Renderer Biased or Unbiased?

We say that Corona Renderer is (un)biased. It offers both unbiased and biased rendering
solutions. By default it uses a slightly biased solution that merges the best of both worlds:
visually plausible results with great render times and without visual artefacts.

Are there some converters for materials, lights, proxies?

3ds Max

From Corona Renderer 2 and onward, there is native compatibility to render the standard
V–Ray Material and V–Ray Light without any conversion being needed, and without
V–Ray being installed/licensed.

Cinema 4D

There is implicit conversion of Cinema 4D and V–Ray lights and materials
(just render, and they should look mostly as expected), and also an explicit converter
which you can use to convert them to Corona lights and materials permanently. V–Ray
needs to be installed for either conversion to work (although this can be a trial version).

Does it support network/distributed rendering?

For Cinema 4D, Corona Renderer is compatible with the native Team Render functionality.

Licensing FAQ

What is the FairSaaS version of Corona Renderer?

FairSaaS or Fair Software As A Service is one of the license types
of Corona Renderer. It is paid on a monthly basis (with an option of paying yearly)
– it is like paying a phone bill. We have created this licensing model as an answer
to the traditional box model shortcomings. It has many benefits, such as affordable price,
zero upfront investment, easy scalability, and ability to install the latest updates as soon
as they are developed. There are more details in the
Prices and Licensing section.

Can I use my FairSaaS License on multiple computers?

Yes. But only one computer can use the license in workstation mode at a time.

Do I have to be always connected to the internet to use the FairSaaS license?

It is advised to be connected to the internet, so Corona Renderer can check its license validity.
But if the internet connection is not available, you can still use it for a few days.

Will I be able to render if my internet connection is lost?

Yes. Corona Render checks license validity every time you start your application.
But if the internet connection is lost for some reason, it will work normally for a few days.

Do you offer a student license?

Can I resell my Box license?

Yes you can, but please notify us first, so we can update our records,
thanks. If you are buying a license, do not trust unknown people selling licenses
over internet. Please contact us first to verify the seller. Some scammers are buying
licenses with stolen credit cards and reselling them. Those licenses will get blocked.

Are there some free render nodes bundled with the license?

Yes, each workstation license comes with a couple of free nodes:
3 for each box license, and 3, 5, or 10 for each SaaS license.
Note that the workstation license can be used also as a render node if needed.

Network license server? Network licensing?

Yes. We have a network license server which works with the floating
FairSaaS license (no server is necessary for the node-locked box licenses).
A network license server has to be connected to the internet and must be on the same local network as the nodes it is servicing.

What if our servers are unavailable?

As above, no big deal. Box versions does not need them
and FairSaaS version will start and let you work for a couple of days without connection.

Is there a demo/free version?

Yes, there are several options to try out Corona:

Corona Renderer for 3ds Max Alpha 6 is free forever.
It does not have any time lock and it is a production-proven build.
It is freely available without watermarks, resolution limitation, or any other limitations.
The only problem is that it is no longer maintained, so no bug fixes will be available.

45-day unlimited demo. of the current full version.
It is freely available here.

How is it with the bug fixes if I do not have subscription?

If we find a bug, we will fix it if you have subscription or not.
You will always get your bug fix for free, the subscription gives you also feature updates.

How long until I get a license after I pay?

Few seconds. Immediately after the payment you will get multiple e-mails
with your invoice, discounts, and serial numbers/login that you can immediately use to activate Corona.

Are the monthly/yearly licenses valid for 30/365 days or until the end of the month/year?

All monthly licenses are valid for 1 month, not only until the end of the month.
Same for the yearly licenses: they are valid for 365 days from the purchase date.

Forum

If you did not find what you were looking for you can try our forum,
which is a valuable source of information. It is an active community created by Corona artists themselves.

Online Helpdesk Portal

We have also prepared online helpdesk portals
for 3ds Max and
for Cinema 4D
where you will hopefully be able to find answers to all common questions regarding Corona Renderer.
In addition to widespread FAQ section it also contains How?/What?/Where?/Does it? sections
and detailed information for technical/power users.

Our helpdesk portal is manned by a dedicated person that will be answering your questions
raised via a ticketing system during business hours (Mo-Fri 10-18 GMT+1). Paying customers will be served first.

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